We all like to think our dogs are gifted and talented, but only a few special pooches worldwide truly are. A new study has revealed the one personality trait that is common amongst "gifted" pups - and it's very easy for owners to spot.
According to the research carried out by Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, dogs that can remember and recognise the names of different objects are more likely to be playful and thus talented. So if your dog can identify their favourite toy when you call it out, it's possible they are in the smart minority.
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Researchers say the ability to learn and associate names with items is very rare, the Daily Record reports.
Ádám Miklósi, co-author and head of the Department of Ethology, said: "This study shows that there is a relationship between extremely high levels of playfulness and giftedness in learning object verbal labels in dogs.
"However, it is important to note that this does not necessarily imply that playfulness is what makes this talent emerge.
"We do not exclude it, but it could also be that the extreme playfulness in the gifted individuals is driven or perceived by the owners as a result of frequent playful interactions with their dogs, with named toys."
The study examined 21 gifted dogs, all border collies, from across the world and compared their traits to a sample of 144 typical dogs from two different countries, Austria and Hungary.
Border collies were specifically selected for their higher chance of being gifted.
Dr. Claudia Fugazza, leading researcher of the study explained: "We restricted our investigation to border collies because most of the Gifted Word Learners belong to this breed."
However Shany Dror, researcher at the Ethology Department at the Eötvös Loránd University, added: "There are some Gifted Word Learners that do not belong to this breed."
The findings of the research revealed that the gifted dogs were found to be more playful than the typical dogs, which suggests they are smarter.
In humans, the capacity to solve problems has been linked to some personality traits and it seems that more playful individuals may show a better problem solving capacity.
If this is the same in dogs, pooches that are full of energy and love to play could be geniuses.
Do you think your dog is gifted? Email nia.dalton@reachplc.com.
